12 landscape photos to give you wanderlust

It’s that time of year again where photographers from all over the world are recognized for their outstanding imagery.

The International Photographer of the Year honors professional photographers who have years of experience. The organization chooses to award these photographers as opposed to amateur photographers who may have gotten lucky with a “killer image.” Photographers must submit at least four photos to demonstrate their skill and versatility.

This year’s overall winner is Max Rive from the Netherlands. Rive began taking photos in 2008 while hiking during a mountain trip. From that excursion, his passion for photography was born.

“I gradually became more serious as a real landscape photographer when I started sharing photos on the internet and became inspired by the work of others,” Rive said in his submission. “and by ‘real’ landscape photographer, I mean using tripods, filters, bigger cameras and waiting for days at a spot to get the shot.”

Rive said the greatest influence on his photos is light. “I try to take away that distraction by making the overall image very dark, but keeping the more important compositional elements of the image bright. However, using this approach, it is important to maintain shadow detail in the darkest parts of the image.”